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Welcome to Sensible Weight Control website, dedicated to the proposition that there is a difference between losing weight, weight control and weight loss.

By definition “losing weight” is a process, as is “weight control” (maintenance) – action phrases!
“Weight loss” is a finished process – it exists only in past tense!

How many times have you heard, “I need to lose weight“ or “What type of weight loss programs have you tried?” It seems that people are constantly looking for that magic solution to always look young and trim. Well in case no one has told you, the biggest secret in the battle to lose weight – THERE IS NO SECRET!

As someone who has struggled with my weight off and on for most of my adult life, it is my sincere desire to share some of the things that worked for me, and some that didn’t and give you a direction in which to set your compass. There is an old saying that “Sometimes one needs to state the obvious.”
I will be stating some obvious things, but please understand it is intended in a spirit of help and love for fellow human beings and not an attempt to beat you up. Most of us who struggle with our weight have enough self-image issues without having someone else adding fuel to the fire. If you’ve read this far, I believe you are sincere enough and smart enough to understand and appreciate what is being laid out here for you. The cries for help have been heard.

Let me tell you right up front – I am not a doctor, and I don’t play one on TV, and I didn’t stay at a Holiday Inn Express last night. I am not a nutritional expert, nor am I a physical trainer. I am an average guy who on 3 separate occasions has lost 60, 25 and most recently, 40 pounds. I’m tired of the yo-yo effect!

As the commercials all say, consult your doctor before beginning any new diet or exercise program!

I only know what has worked for me, so that is what I’ll be relaying to you. However, it is your responsibility to check with your healthcare professional to be sure these methods are safe for you!

To put it in as plain a statement as possible, there are 2 factors to controlling your weight:

1) Diet – controlling caloric intake, and

2) Activity – burning the fat already stored in your body.

Some would argue that simply cutting calories will cause you to lose weight, and they would be correct, but have you ever dieted using only calorie counting? How did that work for you? I would get darned sick and tired of toting around the books and charts and diaries and journals and scales, and taking the needed time to read every nutritional label and weigh every portion. If that’s something you can do and don’t mind doing it, have at it – it’s just not my cup of tea. None of us, especially me, likes being hungry, and I am not going to starve myself or starve my body of what it needs to maintain my health while shedding my spare tire. Nor am I suggesting that you start going to the gym and doing aerobics 5 days a week after being a couch potato for 3 years, but you will absolutely lose excess pounds faster with a combination of the two. Just don’t start by running marathons 3 days a week.

Please allow me to be clear, and put this into (nearly) palatable terms that all of us who struggle with our weight can relate to.

When most people, myself included, hit that OMG number on the scales one morning, we are NOT looking to lose 10 pounds over the next 6 months! We are emotional, usually angry with ourselves, and we want to peel this excess baggage off as quickly as possible. Now! Yesterday! Last week! Especially if spring or summer is fast approaching, or a wedding or some other special function is coming up where you just simply don’t want to be seen looking like what is staring back at you in the mirror! And yes, ladies, guys have these feelings, too!

So, now that we understand each other, how do we go about reducing our calorie intake and getting our bodies to burn the fat already stored there, at the same time, without starving ourselves, and without spending 30 hours a week in the gym?

To begin, I want to give you a simple math problem.
What is the sum of 2 and 5 and 3?
We know the correct answer is 10.
2 + 5 + 3 = 10
You can add 2 and 5 and 3 (or 3, 5 and 2 if you wish) an infinite number of times and the answer will always be 10. Only if you change one or all of the numbers, or add additional numbers will the sum change. Common sense, mathematical certainty, yes? Of course!

I state the obvious to make a point – occasionally, someone needs to state the obvious!
If you are an active 6-foot-tall, 200 pound man, age 30, taking in 3,414 calories a day, you will maintain that body weight (using this calorie calculator)!

If you decrease your activity level, you would only require 3,074 calories daily to maintain it.If you become a couch potato, you would only require 2,807 calories daily to maintain it.
By changing any of the addends, you change the end result.
Today’s Weight + activity level +daily caloric intake = Tomorrow’s Weight
And no, I’m not a mathematics professor either, so please don’t ask me to give you the exact a+b+c=d equation for how they computed these numbers – you see the point!

A woman requires less calories to maintain her weight than does her male counterpart.

All that being said, the fact of the matter is that you now have a tool available to you to calculate how many calories you need on a daily basis to maintain your body weight, given your activity level. Your height and age are also factors, but they aren’t going to change very fast! (Faster for some of us than others!) To lower your weight, you must lower caloric intake or increase activity level, or both!
You’re probably saying, “Tell me something I don’t know.”

Now we’re at that painful point where again, I must point out the obvious – if you know it, why are you reading a webpage about losing weight?

Sensible Weight Control is dedicated to providing ways and resources for you to reach your desired body weight and most importantly, to help you maintain that ideal weight for the rest of your life. I personally offer no magic pill, potion or program. Achieving a goal is the first part of the plan, maintaining the goal is the second. It takes (oh, boy – here comes that word) discipline! The discipline not only to stick with an exercise program, but also the discipline to keep up with what you are eating -how many calories you’re taking in. You have the first resource to determine how many calories you need daily to maintain or lose weight.

How many folks do you know (you now know 1 more!) who have lost weight thru dieting, or exercising, or a combination of both, only to gain back most or all the weight (and sometimes more) because we fall back into the same old bad habits that got us the extra pounds in the first place. Maintaining the discipline to know how many calories you need daily is the first step. A simple online calculator. Other resources are being added, such as charts to tell you the caloric value and nutritional information of the food you eat. Only you can make the decision to start a weight control program – only you can provide the self-discipline it takes to continue. It’s up to you – you have control!

You will find resources here for weight reduction, exercise and activity routines, nutritional information, weight maintenance programs and most importantly, resources to help you develop a program that you can be happy and live with and thus be able to stick with it. In addition, some of these resources provide support forums.

To begin, here is a great video by Corrina Rachel outlining 10 mistakes a lot of us make when trying to control our weight, and some great suggestions as to how to maintain a steady weight:

Your feedback is sought and welcomed. If you find a program, product, method, resource or forum you’re particularly impressed with, please contact me via the contact form on the menu bar. Please include all the particulars, and I will consider adding it to our site.

If it’s to be, it’s up to thee! I believe in you, and wish you all the best.

Thank you for visiting today, and I look forward to your stories and your feedback.

More Resources …

A diet high in protein will help burn that fat away in short order. If you are looking to quicklylose weight in the Roanoke, Virginia area, please contact Dr. Jo Ellen Orr of All Things Essential. 540.793.2669